Tons of Fernet, cognac and raki had been seized as below standard. Police make the dramatic arrests of Hajrulla Hadëri, Ramadan Myslia and Anton Jubani . Shkodër: Tax and Duties chief in handcuffs. The chief, together with an inspector and a warehouseman, was selling to a trader goods that were supposed to be buried. Page 16

By Aleksandër Çipa The cycle of monitoring in Albanian politics has opened once again with the meeting announced for tomorrow, at which all political forces will be represented at the level of their secretaries-general. The OSCE is the “referee” at this meeting, which, judging by the indications so far, may prove to be a failure from the outset. Several recent statements by the main opposition force suggest that the Democrats’ chairs will remain empty. Meanwhile, outside the political camps but within the electoral administration, the much-contested head of the CEC, Fotaq Nano, has once again stepped forward with a statement denying that he will resign. At the same time, the Democrats’ official pretext for not formally accepting the invitation, as well as their statements about a one-sided meeting between OSCE Ambassador Ahrens, Prime Minister Meta and Socialist leader Nano, are clearly the premises for yet another boycott of this meeting. In the aftermath, the crisis is inevitably left unresolved and the missing dialogue remains merely an idea, against a backdrop of tense reality and an increasingly aggravated climate caused by the obstruction and prevention of normality, not only at the institutional level. In this picture, the main currents of Albanian politics are entering the end of 2000 once again in their familiar guise: hostility. No different force or alternative has yet emerged among them; moreover, the international monitoring institutions are also left facing their perpetual difficulty: non-compliance born of stubbornness rather than matters of principle. Contrary to the Berisha–Nano protagonism seen so far, the difficulty in monitoring tomorrow’s meeting seems this time to lie in the more collective stance of the leaders of the political entities. A day earlier, at lower leadership levels of the Democratic Party, talk had turned to the exclusion of Democratic leader Berisha from Ambassador Ahrens’s latest schedule of meetings with the leaders of the majority. Nevertheless, with only one day remaining before the announced meeting, the Democrats have still not officially formulated their demands or justification for boycotting this round-table gathering. Despite their official claim, Ambassador Ahrens remains the figure most contested by the opposition press and politicians, in almost all of his undertakings and statements to date. Around this issue, several acts from the past have returned “on the ground.” Around this issue, several acts of violence and “terrorist signals” have returned “on the ground,” visibly bearing a political guise and composition. Against this backdrop, the initiative for a joint round-table meeting between the political sides remains faint; moreover, its failure seems evident “before the sun has properly risen.”

“All the political parties have been dissatisfied with the CEC and its chairman. This shows that it is independent.” Fotaq Nano speaks to “Koha Jonë” about the elections and the parties’ demands for his removal Page 4

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